


Thrown Into the Midst

by SQ_Scrawls



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell (Undertale), Bara Sans, Cultural Differences, F/F, Gonna make this bad boi as fluffy as I can, Ides of March lore, Monsters on the Surface, Mostly Fluff, Other, Reader Is Not Frisk, Reader is written as gender neutral, Xenophobia, and generally nervous around people, cursing, reader is mildly xenophobic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:41:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23330335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SQ_Scrawls/pseuds/SQ_Scrawls
Summary: You’re a young adult living by themself in Ebott, a decent sized city with a great college you had graduated from just last year with your bachelor’s degree.Ebott was a great city and you loved it with all of your heart, from the downtown shops to the nearby mountain. You couldn’t have asked for a better home.Ah, but then there are monsters.Not that you have anything against them, they’re just scary. And it doesn’t help that you’re finding yourself bumping into them more and more often.
Relationships: Alphys (Undertale) & Reader, Alphys/Undyne (Undertale), Papyrus (Undertale) & Reader, Sans (Undertale) & Reader, Sans (Undertale)/Reader, Undyne (Undertale) & Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter 1

You had been ecstatic when you had been accepted into Ebott University. It was a fairly decent college, and you had always wanted to go there. Something about the campus just drew you there. It could have been that it was the second best college in the state, or that the dormitories were nice, or maybe even the fact that it bordered with the forest surrounding Mt Ebott, a place shrouded in local myths as well as home of plenty of hiking trails. None of the trails went any further than halfway up the mountain, where the city had a fence erected, but they were still fairly challenging. Not to mention the view of the mountain from campus was beautiful. It was the highest peak in the small mountain range in your state. 

After four years enrolled in Ebott University, you had grown attached to the city itself. Instead of moving back to your hometown, you decided to rent an apartment and stay in Ebott for good. 

Almost a year passed and you began to regret the idea. 

News of the monster that lived under Mt. Ebott was released halfway through your senior year of college, but you had blown it off. You didn’t really care much about it, since you were busy writing your thesis and didn’t really pay much attention to the news. So it didn’t really strike you as that bad until monsters were officially released onto the surface almost a year after you graduated, on the 15th of March.

Ironic. 

It was almost two weeks before you ran into your first monster.

You were on a trip to the grocery store, your food stores down to your last few packets of ramen and some borderline expired yogurt. Just because you graduated college didn’t mean you were financially stable. 

Moseying down the pasta isle, a few cases of instant noodles already in your cart as well as a few other essential groceries, you started to grab some of your favorite noodles. Hey, it was easy to cook, and you didn’t exactly spend a lot of time at home.

You were minding your own business, eyes glancing between the list on your phone and the shelf in front of you when you noticed someone else enter the isle from the corner of your eye. 

It was ten at night on a Thursday and the store was almost abandoned. Curious, you peeked over at the other late night shopper.

You clamped a hand over your mouth as you tried not to panic.

It was a monster, looking like a fishy ripoff of some Amazonian woman, standing at six something with bright red hair pulled back into a ponytail and framed with two long fins on each side of its face, as well as a mouth full of needle sharp teeth. It was wearing torn up black jeans, combat boots, and a leather jacket over a crimson tank top. It had an eyepatch over one eye, the other a stark yellow color as it glared at you blatantly, it’s mouth twisted into a sneer.

Oh, you were staring.

You forced yourself to turn your attention back to shopping, still shooting glances at the monster. It matched each of your glances with a harsh glare, barely staying long enough to throw lasagna and spaghetti noodles into the basket over its arm before stalking off.

Letting out a breath you hadn’t even realized you’d been holding, you sagged against your cart, suppressing a shudder. Some instinctual corner of your brain had been screaming at you to leave, to run, to get out of there while you still could, but… besides glaring at you, the monster hadn’t really done anything. 

You pull yourself together and finish your shopping, your mind still skipping back to those needle sharp teeth and piercing eye. 

A few bottles of booze managed to find their way into your cart before you left the store. 

*

Your groceries were haphazardly shoved into the fridge and into cupboards before you grabbed one of your new bottles and took a swig. Oh, bite you. You had work off tomorrow and you had picked up an extra shift or two last weekend, so you were allowed to unwind a bit. 

Nothing like alcohol and video games to take the edge of a difficult week.

You booted up your system before collapsing onto the couch, bottle in one hand and controller in the other. You started playing some random FPS game, taking a gulp of booze every time you died. 

You were definitely buzzed by the time your gaming buddy hopped on. A chat invitation popped up in the corner of your TV, and you pulled out your headset.

“Nick! My man! How’s the missus?” 

You heard him chuckle over the mic. “I have _no_ clue why you keep calling Opal that, but she’s doing good. As fluffy as ever. She’s eating dinner right now, but I guarantee that chubby kitty will get here halfway through my first match. Speaking of, you up for a game of the usual?”

“Sure, sure, just send me the invitation and I’ll be there.” You take another swig of your half empty bottle before setting it aside. Nick was far from a noob, and it took effort and attentiveness to kick his ass. 

You got another pop up that you opened immediately, your game starting to load.

“Nick, you live on the west coast, right?” 

“Yup. Ever since I transferred here from Ebott U. Why?”

You hesitated, mulling over your question before you spoke. “Are there any monsters there? I know that they only _just_ got let onto the surface, but… have you?”

“Well, most monsters haven’t gotten the okay to migrate out of your state,” he responded, adjusting the settings for your match. “But, as the only one of us that actually watches the news, I know that there’s some monster celebrity who’s moved to California.”

You smile to yourself as Nick started up the first round, which was the two of you against a slew of high level bots. “Yeah, but that doesn’t count. It’s a celebrity, they can get a pass for just about everything.”

“That’s the entire upper class, not just celebs. Besides, most monsters haven’t gotten the chance to exchange their gold for surface currency yet. They flooded the market with the gold on their first day. Not even half of the monsters’ total wealth had been exchanged before they banned them from exchanging any of it. It’s been limited to a certain amount per day, since they’ve already gotten some major depreciation on their currency.”

“Oh, that has got to suck.”

“Yeah, probably.”

You took out a few of the bots before you spoke up again. “So what do you think about them? Monsters, I mean?”

“They’re still sentient beings who have built a clean, sustainable source of energy to power the entire Underground. Plus they’ve got magic. I don’t see what there is to complain about.” A notification popped up in the corner of your screen that Nick’s character had died. “Hey, can you stop camping and come help me sweep the map for the rest of these bots? I’m already at two deaths.”

You scoff. “Right, drama queen, I’ll come cover your six as soon as I get this care package unlocked.”

Nick let out a loud, exasperated sigh that sent a burst of static into your headset. “Yeah, yeah, just hurry it up.”

You smirk. “If you ask me again you had better pray to God friendly fire isn’t on or you’ll have even more deaths to complain about, Nicky boy.”

“I hate it when you call me that.”

You chuckle. "I know, that's why I use it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there, you lovely human beings!  
> Thank you for stopping by, and sorry for and formatting mistakes, since I'm relatively new to AO3.  
> I have an idea of the plotline, but I'm not really set in stone when it comes to the exact events, so feel free to let me know if there's anything in specific you want to see happen as some filler/fluff chapters. Since I don't have everything ironed out I'll probably be asking you all for suggestions or opinions when I'm trying to decide where I take this.  
> ONE last thing, I'm trying to keep Reader gender neutral through all this, so let me know if I slip up anywhere so I can go back and fix it.  
> Thank you all once again for stopping by, and I'll see you in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

Nick had to get off early, so you spent the rest of your night playing horror games on your laptop, taking shots every time you got jumpscared. It didn’t take long for you to get absolutely plastered, and you ended up passing out on your couch, a few empty bottles scattered across your coffee table. 

You really started to regret that when you woke up, sweating from a nightmare and cringing at the hangover pounding at your skull and hissing at your sore back as you rolled over to bury your face in the couch cushions.

A quick glance at your too-bright phone screen told you it was just past midday. You groaned as you remembered you were supposed to meet your sister for coffee at two. Which was far too soon for hungover you.

Managing to drag yourself off the couch, you made a beeline for the medicine cabinet in your bathroom. Downing an aspirin and about five glasses of water to chase the dryness from your mouth, you climbed in the shower, reveling in the glorious feeling of the warm water on your aching muscles. It took a bit of coaxing, but you managed to force yourself to leave the comforting warmth of the shower in favor of brushing your hair and throwing on a sweater and a pair of jeans that were _almost_ as warm as the water had been.

You ended up getting to the cafe you agreed to meet your sister at a bit later than two.

When you stepped through the door, scanning the tables, your eyes found her almost instantly. Elia had always worn colorful, over the top clothing that reflected her boisterous personality, and today wasn’t exactly different.

She sported a tank top with a black and white zigzag pattern, a bright emblem across the front, and red skinny jeans, along with her usual black combat boots. This was paired with a black leather jacket and bright red beanie that really stood out against her bleach blond hair

Elia’s eyes slipped over to you, a giant grin spreading across her features as she waved at you, beckoning for you to come join her. You ducked into your baggy sweater before hurrying over to her table and taking a seat.

“Hey there, sib.”

You gave her a small smile. “Hey. Sorry I’m late.”

She waved you off, pushing a cup towards you. “No biggie. Here, I already ordered for you.”

“Thanks, Eli.” You take a sip of the beverage—it was one of your favorites. She knew you really well—before asking about how work was going.

Elia worked as a freelance graphic designer in Ebott, and her demand had soared as of late, since she was one of those few and far between people who catered towards monsters as well as humans. Money was money, no matter whose hands it came from. 

“So…” Elia took a casual sip of her drink. “Are you busy next weekend?”

You quirked an eyebrow at her. “I shouldn’t be. Why?”

An overly sweet smile spread across her features. “So I _kinda_ said I’d bring a friend to a double date thing? And Kaitlyn’s busy, so she said she wouldn’t be able to make it. I asked and they said they’d be fine with whoever I bring, as long as they’re cute.”

“Elia, you know I’m not exactly big on dating.”

She nudged you playfully. “Oh, come on, it’s not that bad. It’ll be _one_ date. Hell, it’s barely even a date! I’ll be there, too, so it’ll be more casual than anything.”

You rolled your eyes. “Honestly, with your track record for dating, I’m surprised you haven’t asked me to do something like this before.”

Elia hummed to herself before perking up again. “I’ll pay your way for the whole thing.”

You sent her a sideways glance, contemplative look on your face.

“So is that a yes?” your sister asked, on the edge of her seat.

You sighed into your cup. “Just be sure to text me the details and what I need to wear.”

Elia pulled you into a tight hug, almost making you spill your drink. “Oh, (y/n), you’re a lifesaver. I couldn’t ask for a better sibling.”

“Oh, shut up.”

*

You gave Elia a quick goodbye hug, before starting to walk home. As much as you loved your sister, it always tired you out to try and keep up with her. You were relieved to be able to walk home in relative peace and quiet. There weren’t many people out, since it was afternoon on a weekday, so you only passed the occasional person as you made your way back to your apartment. 

Feeling your phone vibrate, you pulled it out of your pocket.

It was a text from Elia, letting you know the date you agreed to was at some random Italian restaurant downtown, at around six on Saturday. She had asked whoever she was going in this date with what the dress code should be, since he had been the one to set it up—that had been a surprise, considering Elia was more of a set up the date herself sort of gal—but she informed you it was more of a nice casual than any sort of fancy. 

You let out a sigh of relief at this. The fanciest thing you owned was a pair of slacks and a few button ups that you used for job interviews. Maybe you could pair one of those shirts with a nice pair of jeans and call it good, maybe run a comb through your hair for good measure.

You pocketed your phone again as you rounded a street corner. 

And smacked straight into something solid. 

You curse, stumbling backwards. You felt your nose start to run, a quick swipe of your hand telling you it was bleeding. Oh, that’s just _lovely._

“shit, you ok?”

Hand over your nose to keep blood from dripping on your sweater, you glance at what—who—you had ran into.

As if the blood dripping into your hand wasn’t enough, it was a _monster_ you had the inconvenience of running into. A skeleton monster, to be exact. 

It was about a foot taller than you, and bulky despite not having flesh. It was dressed in a black, fur-lined heavy jacket, a red sweater, and gym shorts. It’s skull was round, the proportions too far off from a human’s to be confused with an actual corpse. It had a wide smile on its face, filled with sharp teeth almost as big as your thumb. It’s eye sockets, probably big enough for you to fit your hand into, had small red pin pricks of light in them that seemed to be pointing to you, almost as if they were pupils. And the skeleton monster was staring at you, it’s eye sockets somehow narrowing at you.

You quickly averted your eyes, suddenly aware you had been staring. “Oh, uh, sorry for running into you. I’ll get out of your way. Sorry.” You stepped aside, careful to stay far enough away that you were sure you wouldn’t accidentally brush against it. 

It’smouth turned down into a frown, the bone flexing and bending almost as easily as human flesh. “you’ve got some, uh… blood? drippin’ onta yer sweater.” It’s voice was deep and husky, probably somewhere in the baritone range, you thought. 

Wait, your sweater?

You look down, taking a sharp breath at the small dots of red that had started to soak into the thick fabric, making you cough at the sudden taste of blood in the back of your throat as you accidentally inhaled some of it. 

“ah, shit, uh… yer not dyin’ are ya? fuck, i don’t gotta take ya ta the hospital, do i ?” it remarked, a hint of panic in it’s voice.

You cup your other hand under your chin, trying to keep any more blood from dripping onto your sweater. Shit, blood was about to get into your sleeve. 

“Nope, I’m fine, just a bit of a nose bleed, don’t worry. Sorry about all of this, I’m gonna get home and clean all this up, bye!” You ramble, stepping around the monster and hurrying down the sidewalk. You had to get home and _soon_ otherwise the stains wouldn’t come out. Which would be a shame, since you really liked this sweater. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used the word ‘sweater’ a total of seven times in this chapter, and five of them were on the same page. 
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment if there’s anything you guys would like to see as a bonus/filler chapter, and please let me know if I’ve made any mistakes, especially if it’s with keeping Reader all around neutral


End file.
